ORIGINAL: haynosity
ORIGINAL: Skullbasher
if the head indeed increases the compression, the only way it could do it would be to decrease the head clearance, because the head cannot effect the seal between the piston and sleeve (blowby).... if you decrease your head clearance, then you run the risk of detonation ....
unless your engine is running in the 400s with a rich tune, i would keep the stock head... aftermarket heads are only for bling factor otherwise...
So your saying that if I put a Stage 2 head on my DTX .18 engine, that i could damage it?
Yes, if your engine is not running at a hot enough temperature, the piston/sleeve will not expand well enough and will cause premature wear.
Don't make the same mistake I did and buy an expensive cooling head, just to find out that you engine runs too cool with it. I can't run my expensive aftermarket head, so now all it's good for is pictures...
If your engine runs at a good temp with the stock head, don't replace it. An aftermarket cooling head should not be used as a solution to running a bad tune.
The only good reason to swap the cooling head is if you are running in very hot weather. This, most of the time still isn't necessary.
In the end it comes down to your decision. I cannot force you to run the stock head, I can only advise you.